Monday, August 14, 2017

I love taking photos! Even more, I love finding unique ways to alter and transform those photos! In this class we will be using printed photographs as the backdrop for layering, painting, journaling and mixed media techniques. I will be sharing some of my favorite tips and tricks for turning pictures into a mixed media art!

There are many online workshops out there at different prices with different content. Back in 2009, when I decided to offer an online learning option, I set out to create a structure that is similar to taking a "live" class from me. My mission is to provide an affordable class with a learning environment where you are watching lots of demos, learning techniques and then creating on your own art.

FACTS:

I have three different structures of online classes:

Large Class: These classes are $50 and have 5 big lessons that include videos, photos, written information, prompts and more. My large format classes dive deep into a variety of techniques, projects and information.

Micro Class: These classes cost $15 and have 1 big lesson that includes videos, photos, written information, prompts and more.

My classes are a combination of video learning (with demos, techniques and me talking) and lots of photo steps outs of inspiration, techniques and process.

All classes are all filmed in my studio. Since 2009 I have been tweaking my gear and my process with the hope that video/photo content gets better and better. My #1 goal is to provide inspiring lessons and visuals that are easy to understand.

My classes do NOT have a required supply list. Instead I share the supplies that I like to use and then give you a variety of options and inspiration to use supplies that work best for your process and your budget.

All of my classes have unlimited access which means that once you register you can create and access at any time and work at your own pace. Whenever I "release" a new class- I release each lesson "live". Many people enjoy working in this format, as the lessons are posted each week but once all information gets posted there is unlimited time to access everything. I have found that some people prefer to work along with the live format when I release a new class, while others will wait months until they have the time, money and the schedule to register for the class. Either way works- just know that once you are in- there is no deadline or pressure to create.

Thursday, August 10, 2017

Hello! I have a craft for you today, which involves upcycling some doilies into some modern wall art.

I had a lovely friend share some of her doily collection with me for this tutorial. (She is a fellow crafter and supply collector!) I think she was saving them to make a quilt but she generously donated some to me for this project. I know that I collect things with the thought of one day doing something with them. I have a whole bucket of candle shaped light globes and corks just waiting for the right project to come along!

For this project you will need:

-A collection of crocheted doilies

-PVA glue

-acrylic paints

First, I dipped my doilies into water and then wrung them out so that they were damp when I painted them. This makes them easier to paint. If the doilies are dry when you start they will just draw so much of the paint and water out of your brush that you will find you are forever adding more paint.

I watered down my acrylic colours to make them work more like watercolours. You’ll get a feel for how runny to make the paint once you start painting. Keep in mind your doilies will really lighten as they dry too, so even though my colours looked quite strong as I was painting them, they really lightened to pastel tones when they dried. You also really do need to use acrylic paints because we want those colours to be waterproof for the next step, and acrylics are waterproof when they are dry.

Paint all of the doilies, filling them all up with colour.

Next, make a 1:1 ratio mix of water and PVA glue and stir well. Gently squeeze each doily out and lay flat on a sheet of plastic to dry. You don’t want to squeeze them out too tightly that you are not left with much of the glue solution in the doilies, but you also don’t want blobs of glue in the little gaps either.

Leave them to dry completely. Once dry they can be pinned up to the wall and will hold their shape. I think they look great in clusters. The more the merrier. I must get my hands on some more!

Wednesday, August 09, 2017

As many of you know, we love making a creative mess around her and one our favorite things to do foot painting, yep you read that right...painting with our feet. It is a process that feels silly, messy and totally weird and Lucy has loved it since she was a toddler! It's also a process that is WAY more fun with friends so recently we invited some of our favorite kiddos over to experiment and stomp around in paint. And let me tell you it was a BLAST! Here are three of our favorite ways to use those feet to get creative-

A fun things to do is to use your shoes as a stamp! You could use an old pair of shoes with interesting texture on the bottom but I thought it would be fun to transform some cheap flip flops into stamps. I cut out shapes from craft foam and glued them to the bottom of the sandals. Then we dipped those shoes into paint and went WILD walking and stomping around on a big piece of butcher paper. The result is a surface filled with stamped pattern!

Wrapping those footies in bubble wrap is one of my personal favorite things to do- yes, I do this all the time! It's so much fun to walk around with that bubble wrap popping as you add colorful pattern and texture to a surface. Kids love this process because it's totally wacky, weird and tons of fun!

Using those toes to hold a brush is another really fun way to explore painting. This process actually takes a lot of focus so it's a great way to get kids to embrace abstraction and expression while having fun.

Monday, August 07, 2017

One of the best things I've done for my creative process is to take time to limit myself. Sometimes it's color, sometimes it's supplies and techniques and sometimes it's my time. I've learned through this process that taking time to challenge myself and even get uncomfortable, forces me to really dig deep. When I don't use color, I suddenly have to think differently about how I will create composition, add contrast or shading. When I limit my supplies or techniques, I get really innovative and make all kinds of discoveries about simple things. When I limit my time, I have fewer opportunities to over think and over work a surface. While I don't limit myself all the time, I've found that a project, a surface or a day in the studio where I focus on simplicity has been #1 way that I've grown as an artist and creative thinker!

My favorite way to limit myself is to only use black and white (instead of a million different colors). While I am obsessed with color, I've found that only using black and white has helped me have a better understanding of contrast, shading, pattern, filling space and overall composition. I pick 2-3 different supplies- typically paint, ink and pens and see how many different things I can do with those things!

Wednesday, August 02, 2017

My long time followers will know that white pens are a really important supply in my creative tool box. And since I get asked all the time (pretty much every day), what kind of white pens I like, I thought I would share my favorite white pens today!

1. Uni- Ball White Signo Pen: So this is my ALL TIME FAVORITE white pen (at least for now). The Uni-Ball Signo is a gel pen that is smooth, bright and has very clean lines. They are archival, water and fade resistant. They are VERY opaque which means they work really well on dark surfaces.

2. Sakura Gelli Roll White Gel Pen: Coming in second place for me is the Sakura White Gelli Roll pen! It's creamy, has great flow and it's waterproof! I love using this pen when I am drawing on black paper.

3. Posca White Paint Pen: I really love the Posca white paint pens! They are super opaque and will work on pretty much any surface. I love using them when I am working over the top of acrylic paint on canvas.

4. Faber-Castell White Pitt Pen: These pens are another favorite because they are filled with opaque white India ink. They have a bullet shaped nip which means you can can create a variety of marks and strokes. I love them when I am drawing on dark paper.

5. Derwent Graphic White Line Painter: A fun water based paint pen. A cool feature of this pen is that the paint is water-soluble when wet which means you can move pigment around on the page but once it's dry, it comes permanent.

7. White Sharpie Paint Pen: I pretty much love any kind of Sharpie and the white, oil based paint pens are great for drawing on all kinds of surfaces. I like to use them on painted canvas, painted fabric, wood and layered art journal pages.

8. Sakura White Pen-Touch Paint Marker: I have always LOVED these pens! They are waterproof, fade resistant and they have really good flow. I love using them to add tiny dots and details to my acrylic paintings

Use those white pens to draw on dark backgrounds! I love using black paper.

And I also really love drawing over the top of dark and colorful watercolor and acrylic backgrounds.

I use white pens to add small marks and details.

White pens are also great for writing and journaling over the top of photos.

Or you can also use those white pens to draw and doodle over the top of a photo or magazine page.

I use those white pens for adding highlights and adding contrast to my black line drawings